ALLOWED | Meaning, Definition In Cambridge English Dictionary

Meaning of allowed in English allowed Add to word list Add to word list past simple and past participle of allow allowverb uk /əˈlaʊ/ us /əˈlaʊ/

allow verb (GIVE PERMISSION)

B1 [ T ] to give permission for someone to do something, or to not prevent something from happening: [ + to infinitive ] Do you think Dad will allow you to go to Jamie's party? You're not allowed to talk during the exam. Her proposals would allow (= make it possible for) more people to stay in full-time education. The loophole has allowed hundreds of drink-drivers to avoid prosecution. The government has refused to allow foreign journalists into the area for several weeks. Prisoners have been moved to allow the demolition of part of the prison. Pets aren't allowed in this hotel. [ + -ing verb ] Smoking is not allowed in this restaurant. [ + two objects ] He didn't allow us enough time to finish the test. Red Cross officials were allowed access to the prison for the first time a few days ago.UK The referee decided to allow (= officially accept) the goal. At the weekend I allow myself (= I give myself the special pleasure of having) a box of chocolates. How much time do you allow yourself (= make available to yourself) to get ready in the morning? to allow someone to do something

• allowAm I allowed to go to the park?
• letShe wanted to go but her parents wouldn't let her.
• permitSmoking is not permitted in any part of the building.
• have your permissionYou have my permission to stay out past midnight on Friday.
• authorizeWho authorized this expenditure?
• give something the go-aheadThe government has given the go-ahead for a multi-billion pound road-building project.

See more results »  allow me old-fashioned a polite expression used when offering to help in some way: You can't carry all those bags yourself - please, allow me. See more

• There is no smoking allowed anywhere on school premises.
• You're not allowed to swim when the red flag is flying.
• After a long boring afternoon I was finally allowed to leave.
• "I will not allow that kind of behaviour in my class, " the teacher said severely.
• He took a step backwards to allow her to pass.

Allowing and permitting

• admission
• admit
• admit of something phrasal verb
• allow of something phrasal verb
• allowable
• allowably
• authorization
• consent
• entrance
• excuse
• give the green light to something idiom
• given the chance/choice idiom
• green-light
• hall pass
• hospital admission
• recertify
• relicense
• relicensure
• right to roam
• say-so

See more results »

allow verb (ADMIT)

[ + that ] formal to admit or agree that something is true: She allowed that she might have been too suspicious. Accepting & agreeing

• accept someone’s invitation
• accepting
• accommodation
• accreditation
• agree to something phrasal verb
• arrive
• conclusion
• daresay
• formal
• grumble
• internalize
• occupy the middle ground
• on the nod idiom
• out of alignment
• peace accord
• pounce
• pounce on something phrasal verb
• seal
• strike a chord idiom
• take/pick up the gauntlet idiom

See more results »

Grammar

Allow, permit or let?Allow, permit and let are verbs that all have a similar meaning: ‘give permission or make it possible for somebody to do or have something’. … Permit/allow someone + to do somethingWe use a direct object + to-infinitive after permit and allow: … Let someone + do somethingWe use an infinitive without to after let: … Passive with permit and allowWe often use the passive with permit and allow. Permit is often used for official public notices: …

Phrasal verbs

allow for something allow of something (Definition of allowed from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of allowed

allowed

In English, many past and present participles of verbs can be used as adjectives. Some of these examples may show the adjective use.

Indeed, he had further success, because some of his pupils were allowed to go on to further study after all. From the Cambridge English Corpus The government raised wages and allowed opposition parties to participate in the 1981 legislative elections. From the Cambridge English Corpus Ten minutes were allowed for cercarial penetration, after which time less than 1 % of the cercariae remained in suspension. From the Cambridge English Corpus Aphids were allowed to reproduce for six days and were removed after this period. From the Cambridge English Corpus Moreover, a panel is now allowed to seek information and technical advice from any individual or body which it deems appropriate. From the Cambridge English Corpus The 1859 law allowed the registration of haciendas and labour contracts, but the $.10 per contract charge acted as a disincentive to the system's use. From the Cambridge English Corpus Rising levels of net disposable income allowed town-dwellers to climb the housing ladder, thereby reducing some at least of the ravages of infection. From the Cambridge English Corpus When combined with the merger provisions, it allowed substantially greater flexibility than had existed before. From the Cambridge English Corpus Demissie allowed his field commanders sufficient freedom of action while demanding full accountability. From the Cambridge English Corpus Providing precise information would have allowed them to make this connection (assuming they were able to process the information). From the Cambridge English Corpus Prior to the experiment, fish were allowed to acclimatize for 2 months. From the Cambridge English Corpus The attributes were allowed to vary across three chosen levels (representing an improvement to or an equivalence to the status quo) across the options. From the Cambridge English Corpus In the present study, comparing the presence versus absence of accurate and informative negative feedback allowed us to assess this hypothesis directly. From the Cambridge English Corpus However, even in coevolutionary models, only a small number of traits are ever really allowed to coevolve. From the Cambridge English Corpus It also allowed us to see significant differences in the make-up of the defectors. From the Cambridge English Corpus These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

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More meanings of allowed

• allow
• allow for something phrasal verb
• allow for sb/sth phrasal verb
• allow of something phrasal verb

See all meanings

• allow for something phrasal verb
• allow for sb/sth phrasal verb
• allow of something phrasal verb

See all phrasal verb meanings

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itch to do something

to want to do something very much and as soon as possible

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• English   
  • Verb 
    • allow (GIVE PERMISSION)
    • allow me
    • allow (ADMIT)
• Examples

• Grammar
• All translations

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